The Royal virus falls within the ransomware type of infection. Malware of such sort encrypts all the data on your PC (photos, text files, excel tables, audio files, videos, etc) and adds its extra extension to every file, creating the README.TXT text files in each folder containing encrypted files.
What is Royal virus?
☝️ A strictly correct description for the Royal would be “a ransomware-type malicious agent”.
Royal will append its extra .royal extension to the name of each encoded file. For instance, an image entitled “photo.jpg” will be renamed to “photo.jpg.royal”. Likewise, the Excel table named “table.xlsx” will become “table.xlsx.royal”, and so on.
In every directory with the encrypted files, a README.TXT text document will be created. It is a ransom money memo. Therein you can find information about the ways of contacting the racketeers and some other information. The ransom note usually contains instructions on how to purchase the decryption tool from the tamperers. You can obtain this tool after contacting them on Onion site through Tor Browser. That is how they do it.
Royal overview:
| Name | Royal Virus |
| Extension | .royal |
| Ransomware note | README.TXT |
| Contact | Onion site |
| Detection | Win32:FileInfector-C [Heur], Trojan:Win32/Raccoon.RH!MTB, Trojan:Win32/Vundo.OD |
| Symptoms | Your files (photos, videos, documents) get a .royal extension and you can’t open them. |
| Fix Tool | See If Your System Has Been Affected by Royal virus |
The README.TXT file accompanying the Royal malware states the following:
ello! If you are reading this, it means that your system were hit by Royal ransomware. Please contact us via: - In the meantime, let us explain this case.It may seem complicated, but it is not! Most likely what happened was that you decided to save some money on your security infrastructure. Alas, as a result your critical data was not only encrypted but also copied from your systems on a secure server. From there it can be published online.Then anyone on the internet from darknet criminals, ACLU journalists, Chinese government(different names for the same thing), and even your employees will be able to see your internal documentation: personal data, HR reviews, internal lawsuitsand complains, financial reports, accounting, intelectual property, and more! Fortunately we got you covered! Royal offers you a unique deal.For a modest royalty(got it; got it ? ) for our pentesting services we will not only provide you with an amazing risk mitigation service, covering you from reputational, legal, financial, regulatory, and insurance risks, but will also provide you with a security review for your systems. To put it simply, your files will be decrypted, your data restoredand kept confidential, and your systems will remain secure. Try Royal today and enter the new era of data security! We are looking to hearing from you soon!
In the picture below, you can see what a directory with files encrypted by the Royal looks like. Each filename has the “.royal” extension added to it.
An example of encrypted .royal files.
How did my computer get infected with Royal ransomware?
There are plenty of possible ways of ransomware injection.
There are currently three most exploited methods for tamperers to have the Royal virus settled in your system. These are email spam, Trojan infiltration and peer file transfer.
If you access your mailbox and see emails that look just like notifications from utility services companies, postal agencies like FedEx, web-access providers, and whatnot, but whose addresser is strange to you, be wary of opening those letters. They are very likely to have a harmful item attached to them. Therefore, it is even more dangerous to open any attachments that come with letters like these.
Another option for ransom hunters is a Trojan virus scheme1. A Trojan is a program that gets into your computer disguised as something legal. Imagine, you download an installer of some program you want or an update for some program. But what is unboxed turns out to be a harmful program that encrypts your data. As the installation package can have any name and any icon, you’d better be sure that you can trust the source of the stuff you’re downloading. The optimal thing is to trust the software companies’ official websites.
As for the peer-to-peer networks like torrent trackers or eMule, the danger is that they are even more trust-based than the rest of the Internet. You can never know what you download until you get it. Our suggestion is that you use trustworthy websites. Also, it is reasonable to scan the folder containing the downloaded objects with the antivirus as soon as the downloading is done.
How do I get rid of the Royal virus?
It is important to note that besides encrypting your files, the Royal virus will most likely deploy the Azorult Spyware on your machine to seize your credentials to various accounts (including cryptocurrency wallets). The mentioned spyware2 can derive your logins and passwords from your browser’s auto-filling cardfile.
Sometimes racketeers would unblock few of your files to prove that they do have the decryption program. Since Royal virus is a relatively recent ransomware, safety measures engineers have not yet found a method to undo its work. Nevertheless, the anti-ransomware tools are frequently updated, so the effective countermeasure may soon arrive.
Of course, if the evildoers succeed in encoding someone’s essential data, the desperate person will probably comply with their demands. Despite that, paying to racketeers does not necessarily mean that you’re getting your data back. It is still dangerous. After receiving the money, the racketeers may deliver a wrong decryption code to the injured party. There were reports about ransomware developers just vanishing after getting the money without even bothering to reply.
The optimal countermeasure to ransomware is to have a system restore point or the copies of your critical files in the cloud drive or at least on an external disk. Of course, that might be not enough. The most crucial thing could be that one you were working upon when it all went down. But at least it is something. It is also advisable to scan your PC for viruses with the anti-malware utility after the OS is rolled back.
There are other ransomware products, besides Royal, that work similarly. Examples of those are Mmvb, Eewt, Oflg, and some others. The two major differences between them and the Royal are the ransom amount and the encoding method. The rest is almost identical: files become encoded, their extensions altered, ransom notes appear in every folder containing encrypted files.
Some lucky users were able to decrypt the arrested files with the help of the free tools provided by anti-ransomware specialists. Sometimes the racketeers accidentally send the decryption code to the victims in the ransom note. Such an epic fail allows the victim to restore the files. But naturally, one should never rely on such a chance. Make no mistake, ransomware is a criminals’ technology to pull the money out of their victims.
How do I avert ransomware attack?
Royal ransomware doesn’t have a endless power, neither does any similar malware.
You can defend your PC from ransomware infiltration taking several easy steps:
- Ignore any letters from unknown mailboxes with strange addresses, or with content that has nothing to do with something you are waiting for (how can you win in a money prize draw without even taking part in it?). In case the email subject is more or less something you are waiting for, check all elements of the dubious email with caution. A hoax email will always have mistakes.
- Do not use cracked or untrusted programs. Trojans are often shared as an element of cracked products, possibly under the guise of “patch” which prevents the license check. Understandably, untrusted programs are difficult to distinguish from reliable software, because trojans sometimes have the functionality you need. You can try to find information on this program on the anti-malware forums, but the best way is not to use such software.
- And to be sure about the safety of the files you downloaded, use GridinSoft Anti-Malware. This software will be a perfect armor for your PC.
Reasons why I would recommend GridinSoft3
There is no better way to recognize, remove and prevent ransomware than to use an anti-malware software from GridinSoft4.
Download Removal Tool.
You can download GridinSoft Anti-Malware by clicking the button below:
Run the setup file.
When setup file has finished downloading, double-click on the setup-antimalware-fix.exe file to install GridinSoft Anti-Malware on your computer.
An User Account Control asking you about to allow GridinSoft Anti-Malware to make changes to your device. So, you should click “Yes” to continue with the installation.
Press “Install” button.
Once installed, Anti-Malware will automatically run.
Wait for the Anti-Malware scan to complete.
GridinSoft Anti-Malware will automatically start scanning your PC for Royal infections and other malicious programs. This process can take a 20-30 minutes, so I suggest you periodically check on the status of the scan process.
Click on “Clean Now”.
When the scan has completed, you will see the list of infections that GridinSoft Anti-Malware has detected. To remove them click on the “Clean Now” button in right corner.
FAQ
🤔 How can I open “.royal” files?Is it possible to open“.royal” files?
Unfortunately, no. You need to decipher the “.royal” files first. Then you will be able to open them.
🤔 What should I do to make my files accessible as fast as possible?
Hopefully, you have made a copy of those important files. If not, there is still a function of System Restore but it needs a Restore Point to be previously saved. The rest of the methods require patience.
🤔 If GridinSoft deletes the Royal malware, will it also delete my files that were encrypted?
Of course not. Unlike the ransomware program itself, the encrypted files do not jeopardize your system.
GridinSoft Anti-Malware only deals with active threats. The ransomware that has infiltrated your device is probably still functional and running scans every so often to encode any new files you might create on your PC after the initial attack. As it has been said above, the Royal malware comes with the company. It installs backdoors and keyloggers that can steal your account credentials and provide criminals with easy access to your computer after some time.
🤔 What actions should I take if the Royal ransomware has blocked my computer and I can’t get the activation code.
In such an unfortunate situation, you need to have a memory stick with a previously installed Trojan Killer. Use Safe Mode to do the cleaning. The point is that the ransomware starts automatically as the system launches and encodes any new files created or imported into your machine. To block this process – use Safe Mode, which allows only the vital applications to run automatically. Consider reading our manual on running Windows in Safe Mode.
🤔 And what should I do now?
Some of the blocked data can be located elsewhere.
- If you exchanged your important files by email, you could still download them from your online mailbox.
- You may have shared images or videos with your friends or relatives. Simply ask them to give those pictures back to you.
- If you have initially downloaded any of your files from the Web, you can try downloading them again.
- Your messengers, social networks pages, and cloud storage might have all those files as well.
- Maybe you still have the needed files on your old computer, a portable device, phone, external storage, etc.
USEFUL TIP: You can use file recovery utilities5 to get your lost data back since ransomware encodes the copies of your files, removing the authentic ones. In the video below, you can see how to use PhotoRec for such a recovery, but remember: you won’t be able to do it before you remove the virus with an anti-malware program.
Also, you can contact the following governmental fraud and scam sites to report this attack:
- In the United States: On Guard Online;
- In Canada: Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre;
- In the United Kingdom: Action Fraud;
- In Australia: SCAMwatch;
- In New Zealand: Consumer Affairs Scams;
- In France: Agence nationale de la sécurité des systèmes d’information;
- In Germany: Bundesamt für Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik;
- In Ireland: An Garda Síochána;
To report the attack, you can contact local executive boards. For instance, if you live in USA, you can have a talk with FBI Local field office, IC3 or Secret Service.
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Brendan SmithHow to Remove ROYAL Ransomware & Recover PC
Name: ROYAL Virus
Description: ROYAL Virus is a ransomware-type infections. This virus encrypts important personal files (video, photos, documents). The encrypted files can be tracked by a specific .royal extension. So, you can't use them at all.
Operating System: Windows
Application Category: Virus
User Review
( votes)References
- You can read more on Trojans, their use and types in the Trojan-dedicated section of GridinSoft official website.
- You can read more on spyware variants and nature in the respective section of GridinSoft official website.
- GridinSoft Anti-Malware Review from HowToFix site: https://howtofix.guide/gridinsoft-anti-malware/
- More information about GridinSoft products: https://gridinsoft.com/comparison
- Here are Best Data Recovery Software Of 2023.
